Ten technologies that have changed our lives

We no longer conceive of life without technology. Going on the street talking on the phone, making arrangements at a distance, virtually walk the place we go on vacation ... are small actions that we have gradually incorporated into our daily routine, but until recently cost us displacements, time and paperwork .

Despite the fact that in the last two decades many services and products have emerged, many of them associated with the Internet, there are still many to come. Teleportation, the formula of eternal youth, the prolongation of life several decades more, interstellar travel are some examples. It is curious that many films placed in the year 2000, a round figure, a new millennium, the arrival of many of these discoveries, but it has not been like that, they are still fiction.

However, much progress has been made. These are some of the great technological players of our time:

1. Smartphones which continue their upward trend. According to a study by Analysis Mason, in 2014 there will be 1,700 million smartphones in the world. The possibility of connecting to the network from anywhere and at any time is what has caused its boom. Its generalization and use are leaving behind other media such as the desktop computer and even laptops.

2. Mobile applications or apps, which are used in all areas: leisure, travel, games, management, health, emergencies, education, the environment, or for activities as specific as learning languages ​​or acting as a "guide dog" for the blind. Their success is that they make our lives easier and entertain us.

3. The press and digital books, online music, movies on the net ... They have been a real revolution and also the questioning of many business models and even the end of a way of life. For many, the appearance of these media will lead to the annihilation of the press on paper, and the decline of the record and film industries as they are conceived today.

4. Telemedicine In the field of health, not only new drugs and equipment for the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of diseases are being investigated, but technology has become the great ally of health professionals, who use it every day to do Follow up on your patients or to share information in real time with other professionals. On the other side of the "counter" are patients, who use technology and the Internet to corroborate the diagnosis of doctors or simply to learn about their possible pathologies.

5. Online training (elearning) and online courses (MOOC, massive open online courses). Education is also incorporating new features, not only in the classroom - with the introduction of digital whiteboards, tablets instead of textbooks, online exercises, etc. - but also in the very concept of training. It is no longer necessary to attend a center in person or have a budget to expand our knowledge. In the network there is everything, and even free courses of universities, like Stanford, open to everyone. It is only necessary to register.

6. Smart cities and the Internet of things. More and more cities are becoming smart, "smart", in order to optimize available resources and improve people's lives. These cities must meet three characteristics: respect for the environment, sustainable development and use of information and communication technologies (ICT). How do they work? With thousands of devices (cameras, sensors, mobile) that communicate in real time what is happening around you, providing information about the temperature, the arrival of the next bus, traffic warnings, noise levels, presence of CO2, etc. Santander, Málaga, Barcelona and Madrid are some examples of this type of cities at the service of the citizen.

7. The geolocation or possibility of knowing the geographical location of something or someone. In the beginning it was used to control where the vehicles of a fleet were, a certain merchandise or even the traceability of the food. Nowadays, it is increasingly applied to people. The fashion of doing check-in (sharing and saving the places you visit) through applications such as Foursquare has meant that everyone can be located (if you want to be). Google, Facebook and Twitter have also entered into the world of geolocation with their respective applications. All that information can be very useful not only to the friends to have us located or to know what we think about a place, but also to the companies, to promote their businesses.

8. Electronic commerce According to the latest report by Fundación Telefónica on the Information Society in Spain, almost 20 percent more electronic commerce operations have been produced in our country in 2012 than in 2011. There are already 27 online buyers per 100 inhabitants. This marks a change in the trend in consumer buying habits and in business.

9. The means of payment. The traditional payment by credit or debit card is evolving towards payment with the mobile phone, through technologies such as NFC (Near Field Communication), and even payment with virtual currencies such as the famous Bitcoin. We do not even talk about cash anymore ..

10. Blogs, instant messaging and social networks. Picking up the phone and meeting someone has been outdated. Instant messaging, with WhatsApp in the lead, and social networks, with Facebook in the forefront with its 1B users, have generated a new way of relationship and communication between individuals, and between them and companies. Every year there are more users and businesses that join the ranks of social networks. The first as a means of meeting people, interacting and giving opinions. The second, to approach the consumer, attract new customers, retain, sell ...


These are just some examples, do you want to tell me one more?